sermon

/ˈsɜː.mən/

//ˈsɜː.mən// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"sermon" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“sermon” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #13,235. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#13,235
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
14
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Religious discourse; a written or spoken address on a religious or moral matter.

Corpus desk

Index EN-sermon · sermon · English

sermon · rank #13,235 · 9 variants · 14 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #13,235
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 14 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH Sacks

Nearest frequency peer: Sacks (-2 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “sermon”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “sermon” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

sermon vs Simon
50% similar
sermon vs servo
67% similar
sermon vs seton
67% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for sermon
PropertyValue
Headwordsermon
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈsɜː.mən/
Letters6
Frequency rank#13,235
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs14
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “sermon”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).sermonlands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “Sacks” (#13,233), “Roth” (#13,232), “slender” (#13,238). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “sermon” is #13,235. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around sermon (IPA /ˈsɜː.mən/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #13,235 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for sermon, with forms such as "esrmon", "semron", and "sermmon". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 14 confusable-pair relationships, "Simon", "servo", "seton", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English sermoun, from Anglo-Norman sermun and/or Old French sermon, from Latin sermō, sermōnem, from Proto-Indo-European *sermō, from *ser- (“to bind”) + *-mō. The correct English form is sermon, spelled S-E-R-M-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    Religious discourse; a written or spoken address on a religious or moral matter.
  2. 2
    A lengthy speech of reproval.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

These source excerpts show how sermon appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. One saint's day in mid-term a certain newly appointed suffragan-bishop came to the school chapel, and there preached on “The Inner Life.” He at once secured attention by his informal method, and when presently the coughing of Jarvis […] interrupted the sermon, he altogether captivated his audience with a remark about cough lozenges being cheap and easily…

Etymology

From Middle English sermoun, from Anglo-Norman sermun and/or Old French sermon, from Latin sermō, sermōnem, from Proto-Indo-European *sermō, from *ser- (“to bind”) + *-mō.

This word in other languages

sermón(Español)sermon(Français)Predigt(Deutsch)sermão(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • esrmon
  • semron
  • sermmon
  • sermno
  • sermonn
  • seromn
  • serrmon
  • sremon
  • ssermon

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of sermon - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

esrmon2semron2sermmon1sermno2sermonn1seromn2serrmon1sremon2
Edit distance from "sermon"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "sermon"?
"sermon" is spelled S-E-R-M-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsɜː.mən/.
What does "sermon" mean?
As a noun, "sermon" means: Religious discourse; a written or spoken address on a religious or moral matter.
What words are commonly confused with "sermon"?
"sermon" is commonly confused with "Simon", "servo", "seton". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "sermon"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "sermon" is /ˈsɜː.mən/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "sermon"?
From Middle English sermoun, from Anglo-Norman sermun and/or Old French sermon, from Latin sermō, sermōnem, from Proto-Indo-European *sermō, from *ser- (“to bind”) + *-mō. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "sermon", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

sloppy#13,239rested#13,229sponge#13,246Steele#13,247

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

sucker9 variantsTiffany9 variantsupheld9 variantsValerie9 variants

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list